A Supply Market Analysis Framework for Test Equipment of New Technologies A Case Study of Volvo Cars Corporation

The automotive industry is currently undergoing several innovation changes, such as electrification of vehicles, autonomous drive and connected cars. These changes are affecting several operational activities, for example procurement of test equipment, which is a crucial activity for automotive OEMs. This thesis has focused on one new innovation change and its related test equipment, which has gained increased focus the recent years. The market for the test equipment is new and is expected to grow rapidly in the future which attracts new suppliers to enter the market. Today only a few companies are offering the test equipment with right features and due to that the supply market is dynamic it is hard for automotive OEMs such as Volvo Cars Corporation to get an overall understanding of the market. An understanding like this is especially important when conducting competitive sourcing strategies. Therefore, this thesis aimed to increase the understanding of the supply market of test equipment by performing a supply market analysis. The analysis was done by using a supply market analysis framework which was designed according to both literature and strategic buyers at Volvo Cars Corporation. By following the framework new understandings about the market were gained and thus contributed to a foundation for future sourcing strategies. When performing this study, data was collected through interviews, site observations and secondary sources such as market reports and news articles. During the supply market analysis, six trends were identified. Three of the trends were related to the market and these were; growing market in terms of revenue, increasing power of established suppliers and an increase of partnership constellations between start-ups, OEMs and established suppliers. The other three identified trends were related to the product and these were; decrease in price, change in product characteristics and development of unique solutions. In addition to this, five key suppliers were identified and compared regarding for instance their innovation and maturity level. This showed that the suppliers Beta and Delta have the highest innovation and maturity level. After performing the analysis, the authors propose two different ways of securing future supply of the test equipment. These options are to initiate a partnership with either a Tier-1 or Tier-2 supplier. The benefits are that it is possible to customize the product and secure future supply of such a critical component